Everything is just golden for Tennessee football following the 45-26 win over Syracuse on Saturday. However, it's easy to forget that plenty of people were worried sick earlier in the day when it was revealed that right tackle David Sanders Jr. was going to be out of action.
Everyone was waiting for Sanders to make his Vols debut, as he signed with the team as one of the top offensive tackles in the country for the 2025 class. He suffered an upper-body injury in practice, however, forcing him to sit this one out.
Immediately, Vols fans were concerned that Sanders would be out for a few games. Luckily, that's not going to be the case, as Josh Heupel said after the win over Syracuse that Sanders is going to be just fine and he's expected to play in the home opener in Week 2. Amazing news:
Joey Aguilar delivers incredible Tennessee quote after his epic Vols debut
David Sanders Jr. should be ready to go next week!
— Paige Dauer (@PaigeDauerFDP) August 30, 2025
Josh Heupel said Sanders got nicked during Wednesday’s practice. They anticipated him playing this morning. Medical staff advised against.
“It was hard for David to get that news. He anticipated playing.” Added he was a good… pic.twitter.com/XYsCJWfBdr
David Sanders Jr. Injury Update: Tennessee OT should be just fine for Week 2
Obviously, that's a major relief for several different reasons. Sanders has looked sharp from the moment he made the move to Knoxville. With him being a 5-star signee too, it only adds to the excitement surrounding his true freshman campaign.
Missing Week 1 can be looked at as a setback for him, but Heupel quickly clearing things up like this is fantastic. With Sanders not able to suit up vs. the Orange, there was some shifting up front for the Vols, with the starting unit being: left tackle Lance Heard, left guard Sham Umarov, center Sam Pendleton, right guard Wendell Moe Jr. and right tackle Jesse Perry.
It was a last-minute surprise not having Sanders out there, but the Vols offensive line did a fantastic job in giving Aguilar plenty of time to scan the field, including when the QB1 tossed his 73-yard TD to Braylon Staley. It was a dime of a throw from him and a great catch from Staley.
Sanders saw that play from the sidelines, but he'll be back in action next week vs. East Tennessee State. He'll get some key in-game reps before the monster Week 3 clash with Georgia too, which is going to prove to be huge for him.